Powered by five champions, three runner-ups and 12 wrestlers placing fifth or better, Bel Air repeated as Upper Chesapeake Bay Athletic Conference wrestling champions Tuesday at Aberdeen High School.
The Bobcats totaled 253.5 points to easily outdistance second place Patterson Mill's 169.5. Harford Tech was third with 147. Rounding out the field were Fallston, 133.5; Aberdeen, 126; North Harford, 125; Bo Manor, 105.5; Rising Sun, 75.5; North East, 72.5; Elkton, 69.5; Edgewood, 53; Perryville, 53; C. Milton Wright, 49; Havre de Grace, 47; and Joppatowne, 32.
It is Bel Air's fifth title in the conference's 11 years of competition.
"We're pretty solid in all weight classes and we're actually pretty young," Bobcats coach Craig Reddish said. "Eleven of our guys placed in the top four and another got fifth, so we're pleased. It's two in a row and we're excited."
Claiming the Bobcats first title, senior David Reagan controlled Havre de Grace freshman Alex Lloyd for a 16-4 major decision win at 113 pounds. Reagan scored six takedowns and finished off the match with a near fall.
"My coaches said keep letting him up. I guess they knew I could do better on neutral and tire him out toward the end so I could get more points," Reagan said. "It's amazing, it's what I've worked for all year."
Teammate and senior captain Brady Stafford added a win at 132, coming from behind against Tech sophomore Jonathan Lechert. Lechert led 2-1 midway through period two and looked like he might be turning Stafford on his back, but Stafford reversed him and took Lechert right to his back. The pin was called at 3:45.
"It felt like he was really catching up to me and I knew I had to pull something out where I could win the match and get some points. Luckily, I got him right on his back and got the pin as soon as possible," Stafford said. "I grabbed his head and his arm, threw him in a headlock, end of story."
The next two Bobcat wins came in consecutive matches. Senior Cameron Watts, a champion at 145 last year, won the 152 title, but like Stafford, had to come from behind.
Watts trailed Perryville sophomore Eugene Zacerous, 3-2, entering the third period. An escape by Watts tied the score at 3 and the two waged an even battle until the final 10 seconds. Watts took Zacerous down and to his back for two additional back points to win, 7-4.
Sophomore Scott Miser had a little easier time at 160. Miser jumped ahead of Havre de Grace junior Jacob Sweigart, 6-3 on two takedowns and near fall points.
Miser added two more takedowns and was awarded a penalty point when Sweigart was called for excessive roughness with forearms to back of the head. Sweigart made it close in the end, but Miser won, 11-9.
Junior Dakota Crawford added the fifth win at 285. Crawford traded stalling points with Tech's Caleb Warner in the first period and then scored the matches only other point on a second period escape. Crawford won, 2-1.
The Bobcats' three runner-ups were junior Tyler Ham, 120; freshman Liam Bowers, 138; and sophomore Sam Queen, 170. The Bobcats also had three fourths and a fifth, adding to the complete team domination.
Huskies get three champs
Patterson Mill took down three titles, led by senior Jake Nikkila at 126. It was Nikkila's second straight at that weight, but it wasn't easy.
Nikkila battled Aberdeen senior Dylan Morris in a bout that had one score. Nikkila's first period takedown was all that was needed in a 2-0 win.
"I didn't expect anything going into it, I expected a tough match, so in one sense, absolutely, but I wasn't going to put a score to it," Nikkila said.
Junior Colin McDonald won the Huskies first title the match before Nikkila at 120. McDonald was in complete control of Bel Air's Ham. McDonald scored a takedown and near fall in both the first two periods, en route to a 13-0 major decision win.
The Huskies final win came at 220, from senior Joe King, who scored in each period while limiting Bo Manor senior Cody Dermeyer to two escape points. King won the championship, 6-2.
Cougars, Hawks each win two
Fallston and North Harford both had two champions. Junior Devin Hyman won the 106 title for Fallston, pining the top seed, Patterson Mill freshman Mike Maas in 2:37. Hyman, leading 2-0, reversed Maas and put him on his back early in the second period for the fall.
At 195, senior Gabe Wagner upset his way to the title. In the final, Wagner took the top seed, Aberdeen junior CJ Allen, to his back midway through the second period. The pin was called at 3:21.
North Harford's wins came in back-to-back matches. Angelo Koulatsos earned the win at 170, beating Queen of Bel Air, 7-3. Queen scored first with a takedown, but was limited to an escape point the rest of the match. Koulatsos, meanwhile, scored five points in the final period to win.
Senior teammate Greg Fiackos won an upset at 182. Fiackos led top seed Wyatt Graham of CMW 4-1 before catching him and putting him down for a pin at 3:34. Graham, a freshman, had a 35-2 mark entering the match.
Kalwa wins for Tech
Tech junior Andrey Kalwa captured the 145 title with a controlling, 8-4, win over Bo Manor senior Matt Sciamanna. Kalwa used three takedowns and a reversal, while limiting Sciamanna to four escapes.
Nixon leads Edgewood
Edgewood sophomore Ariq Nixon won at 138, pinning Bowers of Bel Air in 5:51. Nixon and Bowers were knotted at 3, with one period remaining. Nixon, starting down, went ahead with an escape and then used a takedown that forced Bowers onto his back for the fall.
"I let him tire himself a bit and then waited for the right time to shoot and I caught him," Nixon said. "I kept my pace."
Harford schools, which outnumber Cecil 10-5 in the conference, won all 14 weight class championships.